Thick Film Power Resistor with Thick Printed Copper Terminals

Abstract:

This paper is focused on the thick film power resistors with copper terminals. These terminals are manufactured by the new Thick Printed Copper (TPC) technology. This technology is based on sequential screen printing and firing of copper paste in nitrogen atmosphere on alumina substrate.

TPC technology is predominantly used for power electronic substrates manufacturing. The major trends of power electronics are continual miniaturization and power increasing. It brings increased requirements on electronic components particularly in terms of heat dissipation. Thick film power resistor with copper terminals represents potential replacement of standard wirewound power resistors and allows direct integration of resistors on TPC substrates.

Printed resistors on TPC substrates can be supplemented with discrete electronic components which creates the possibility to realize truly complex power electronic circuits. The direct integration of printed components is not possible in case of standard Direct Bonded Copper (DBC) technology. The main benefits of printed resistors based on TPC technology are its low thickness and good thermal conductivity. The low thickness of resistors is important for miniaturization of final electronic devices. The resistor main electrical parameters (temperature coefficient of resistance, temperature coefficient and nominal resistance value after aging by dry heat test, insulation resistance, dielectric strength etc.) are described in this paper.